Grace Network deeply mourns the loss of life and devastation from the tragic earthquake in Haiti.  We are listing updates from Siloe and La Rousse as they become available.  Updates after the intial postings are posted by date and are in chronological order.

(Note:  Anna Butt and Dr. Sarah Neely were working at the church with the health workers when the earthquake hit.  You can read a summary of that afternoon and a note Anna wrote a note to share with you by clicking here or on the sidebar.)  

• It is confirmed that Pastor Bienne L’Amerique perished in the earthquake, but his wife and children are alive.  Pastor Bienne’s body has been recovered and he has been buried alongside the body of his mother-in-law who also perished.
• The church (L’Eglese Baptiste Siloe) sustained severe damage and many people in the church are presumed to be dead.  The congregation is using the church property at Delmas for safety and support.
• Selem, worship leader and teaching deacon is alive and well, as is his family.
• Merlin (Associate Pastor) is alive but injured and some of his family members are injured.
• For those who might remember him, Vannel is deceased and his home destroyed.
• Most of the church leadership survived and all the health workers there survived, with the exception of the principal of the school. 
• Se Tata’s house sustained severe damage and her body was recovered from the rubble of her home.  A coffin was purchased and she has been buried.  Her funeral service was attended by all the members of her Tuesday prayer group.  Arthur (Se Tata’s son) was contacted and told that the emergency GN team will go to the house and do what they can to recover things and secure the property.
• Se Rose also died when Se Tata’s house collapsed.
• We praise God that Rivanna Community Church member Anna Butt, and Christ Community Church member Dr. Sarah Neely, who were serving at the clinic when the earthquake occured,  are home, alive and well.  They are documenting some of their experiences and we hope to be able to communicate these shortly.
• NC4 member John LaRose’s brother in Haiti is safe, along with his brother’s family.
• NC4 member Roseline LaRose’s brother is still missing.
• NC4 member Nadine Salvodon has many family members in Haiti  (Jan 16 update:  3 cousins perished; 1 family member is in a coma.  They have heard that most of the family is OK, but they are now homeless.)
• Grace Network churches will be receiving special offerings and donations for Haiti relief that will directly support the needs of L’Eglese Baptiste Siloe.
• Individuals or other churches that would like to donate to this relief effort may contribute through a Grace Network Church (please see network directory), or directly to Grace Network. 
• If you are choose to donate through Grace Network, please make checks payable to Grace Network and designate “Haiti Fund” in the memo line.  Checks should be mailed to Grace Network, PO Box 307, North Chili, NY  14514.   You may also donate through PayPal by clicking here.

January 19

• Ricardo and another church member reported that 6 houses in La Rousse were destroyed (we assume this means homes of church members) and that the church is badly damaged but the roof is intact. 
• The Siloe leaders met this morning.  They discussed many things, including a funeral for Bienne and an accurate survey of the dead, living, and wounded within the church.  Selem does not know how many are dead, but said that alot of children are missing.   Dave asked that our formal greeting be delivered at the meeting and gave Selem our intended trip dates.
• Selem says that, in terms of security, things are pretty good, pretty calm.  They have seen some American soldiers.  There is some water available, but the team should try to bring everything they need for the time they are there.
• Dave told them that we are standing beside them; we have not forgotten them and we’re coming as soon as possible.  Both responded, “We know.”

January 20

• We have learned that no aid whatsoever has reached the church’s section of Delmas and that ordinary water purification methods are not available.   This was confirmed by Wilson, another leader in the church who added that other wards have received aid, but even then, only a few receive it, not the entire ward.  He said that it’s difficult for people from their ward to go to other areas for aid because it’s unpredictable and distributions can get out of hand.  Additionally, the health center is far away and it is difficult for injured patients to there.  Wilson said that, as Christians, members of Siloe Baptiste will not fight for food; they are trusting God to deliver them. 
• Medicine and food are top priorities.  The people have run out of food and are really struggling.  Water purification is also an important need.

January 22 – Anna was able to talk with Ricardo by phone.  The following are updates from that conversation:

• Relief in the form of food and water has not reached the community.  It can be purchased but is expensive.
• The people are hungry, thirsty, and scared because the trembling of aftershocks continues.
• The medical supplies left by the last team are still at the clinic.
• The security situation is stable and is reported as safe.
• LaRousse update: Adilam lost his house along with a number of other people that we know.  The church there is damaged but may be usable; school has been canceled.

January 23-  A GN team is on the way!  A team of 8 is confirmed on a Humanitarian Flight out of Miami.   The team will provide medical assistance and assess the structural soundness of facilities to develp both short and long-term building plans.  They will fly into Miami this evening since their checked bags must be delivered to the cargo terminal early Sunday morning, and will then fly to Port au Prince early Monday morning (1/25).   Please pray for their safety, for their health, and for wisdom and discernment as they travel and minister comfort and aid.

January 24 – The first leg of the trip went very well for our team.  The airline, hotel, and many others have been cheering them on and offering support.  The team is encouraged.  Please continue to pray for our Haitian brothers and sisters as they patiently wait for the team to arrive – and pray that the team gets good rest today as they prepare for their arrival in PAP early tomorrow morning.

January 25 - Praise God for our team’s safe arrival in Port au Prince!   Their flight was uneventful and they were the first plane to land in PAP with no holding pattern – a miracle in itself!   All baggage arrived safely and was located without problem after it was unloaded from the plan onto the tarmac. 

• The team continues to be overwhelmed by God’s provision.  Yesterday, they learned that they would be able to stay at a Christian school that is allowing medical teams to stay on their grounds.  They (along with teams from around the world) will be staying in a building that has been checked by a structural engineer and determined to be structurally sound.  An organization that provides logisitics in crisis situations is at the school, caring and providing meals, transportation, etc. to keep teams comfortable and going strong.  An army group is also based there, so they feel safe.  We praise God for the comfort of this home base –  it will help our team to carry on the ministry to those in need. 
• Once settled in at the school, the team went to meet with the church leaders.  The meeting went well, but was emotional at times – more lives have been lost than what had been conveyed to us through earlier communications.  Many have lost their homes and are living in tents or under tarps in the streets.   However, the church leaders and health workers have put together a plan to help those in need and have developed committees to handle the funds with discretion and help people in the churches at Siloe and LaRousse.  They have been working hard to assess the church members’ needs and have a good idea as to what they need to do so that they can meet both the immediate and greater need.   Our team worked to affirm them in their role as leaders and gave the leaders and health workers the water treatment supplies, the solar radios and the water that had been donated.
• The church is damaged far more than they anticipated and they are now unsure as to whether it can be salvaged.  Delmas 19 (SeTata’s block) and Delmas 30 (the street by the church) are part of the worst hit areas from what they have seen.  The first clinic tomorrow will be for the leaders and health workers who are seriously injured and sick.
• The church has already held the funeral for Pastor Bienne.  Please pray for Marjorie as she mourns the loss of her husband. 
• As for the team, they are extremely tired; mostly due to the early start, not sleeping well, and the emotional aspect of this trip.  However, they are doing well.  They will be working each day from 8:00AM-4:30PM, after which they will return to the school to meet as a team and rest.
• PRAYER POINT:  The team asks prayer for wisdom as they assess and determine how to best serve.  Please also pray for good rest and good health.

January 26 -  The team saw approximately 45 patients today, starting with the church leaders and their families, treating mostly broken bones and wounds.  They also saw Bienne’s sons and cared for them.   Marjorie (Bienne’s wife) called and the team is planning to go see her tomorrow. Please continue to pray for her – she lost her husband, her mother, and her home the day of the earthquake. 

• Toward the end of the day, the team closed the clinic and went to see Se Tata’s house  Unlike what we thought we saw on Google earth, her neighborhood was hit very hard.  The team found it very difficult emotionally.  The house and the “depot” out front were gone; the apartments behind her house are standing but unusable.  As the team walked around the property crying, a neighbor boy came by and pointed out that Se Tata was buried on the site in a spot they hadn’t noticed.  Someone had place cement blocks and concrete on her grave.  The team added some more concrete and wrote her birthdate and date of her death in the wet cement.  Together, they held a memorial in her honor.
• Area of concern:  At one point during the day, two of the team members were walking on a street perpendicular to Delmas and noticed an area where the ground was broken by the quake.  They are concerned about what will happen when the rains come.
• Praise report:  Mark Nelson’s sister is in PAP with an aid organization and she came by Siloe today with a structural engineer – this is an answer to prayer!  The condition of the building is not as grim as they first thought.
• Tomorrow, approximately 20 of the most seriously injured or sick patients from LaRousse will be coming to the clinic at Siloe. 
• Please continue to pray!  The team is healthy.  They miss their loved ones but are glad to be where they are and can see that it means the world to the Haitians.  They ask us to please pray that God would continue to show His grace in little ways.

January 27 - The team had an awesome day.  Each night they’ve been meeting with a group of physicians from the 10-15 organizations staying at the same compound.  One of the physicians is an orthopedist and they invited him to work with their team today.  They’ve been able to set up their clinics in the church courtyard and have been working as a group (not splitting into smaller teams).

• The team was able to cast several people and do alot of wound care and debridement.  One woman had been sent to Dominica and was told that she would have to have her broken hand amputated.  However, the orthopedist with our team today was able to cast her and she should be able to keep her hand.  Our team said that this is a problem they are seeing as a result of people not getting good medical care.
• They also saw a person whose circulation was getting cut off to their limb as a result of being cast too tightly.  They were able to get that person to a hospital.
• In total, the team saw approximately 85 people today and the orthopedist saw approximately 15 for them.  Most of the people were from Siloe; about 20 were from LaRousse.
• They are doing well with the supplies they brought with them, but are seeing alot of scabies.  One of the drugs apparently isn’t working well with the patients, so the team is working with the next team on possible options.  They also need more baby formula as they are seeing many babies without food/formula. 
• They were unable to see Bienne’s wife Marjorie today, but plan on doing clinic until 2PM tomorrow and then go visit with her.
• Prayer request:  Please pray for Saniva who was head of their lab.  Her husband died and she lost her home.  She has not been able to find a place to live and if she cannot find a home, she will have to move to St. Mark with her family.  She has been a tremendous help in the clinics in the past. 

Team update

• Prayer request:  Lynn was supposed to go to LaRousse today, but was sick with a stomach bug.  He was able to keep some fluids down this afternoon, but please pray for his healing.  He will probably go to LaRousse on Friday to assess the situation there.
• The rest of the team is healthy and doing well.  They are sleeping on the floor of the school and sleeping OK.  Praise report: When they first arrived, there was one shower for 100 people.  Now the school has 10 showers set up!  
• Tim said that both the school and Crisis Response International have been such a blessing to them.  There is a pastor on the compound that checks in with the team every day and prays with them.
• Today, they celebrated Mike G’s birthday by singing “Happy Birthday” to him on the tap-tap (Haitian taxi – but more like a small open-air, semi-covered pick-up truck).  Mike said he  was thankful to be able to celebrate his birthday in Haiti.  Everyone sends their thanks and love for all the prayer and support they are feeling.
• IMPORTANT PRAYER REQUEST:  Please pray for the team’s return flight logistics.  We have just learned that some flights out of Port au Prince have been canceled.

January 28 -  The team had a good day.  They had a nice visit with Marjorie (Bienne’s wife) and said she looked good and that the kids are doing fine.  They (Marjorie and the kids) are staying with neighbors across the street from where their house once stood.  The team went with her and tried to help her retrieve a few things – after seeing the house, they said it was truly a miracle that she and the kids were able to get out.

Clinic update

They saw 45 patients today.  One o their patients was a four-year-old girl with a broken left foot, broken left tibia and fibula, broken left shoulder blade, and possible a broken right foot.  All of these injuries were suffered in the quake, and she had not yet received any medical attention.  The team sent her to the CDTI hospital and are praying that she will not lose her left leg – but if that should happen, that her life would be spared.  They are also continuing to treat wounds and re-dress some of the wounds they treated earlier in the week.

Team update

Everyone  is feeling better.  Michael (who, along with a few others in the compound began feeling ill yesterday), was feeling a bit better by noon today, but still needs to regain full strength. 

Prayer requests

They are still trying to get return flights and would appreciate continued prayer for those details to work out.  Please also continue to pray for restored and good health.

January 29 - We are happy to report that everyone is now healthy, feeling well, and in good spirits.   As you know, the team has been staying in a school with other medical teams and an army unit.   Since our team was one of the earlier groups to arrive, they were given quarters inside the building, and even have a ceiling fan!   Other groups are in tents, so they feel blessed.    

Everyone misses their loved ones, but they are truly glad for the opportunity they’ve had to help – they feel that they have made a difference.    At the clinics, they’ve treated mostly untreated injuries – fractures, infected wounds, and lacerations. They also spent a lot of the time setting fractures and cleaning/debrieding wounds.  Today, they treated hypertension, diabetes, headaches, etc.   Overall, they really feel as if they’ve done something for the community.

Please continue to pray for the team’s return travel logistics.  American Airlines has canceled all commercial flights out of Haiti, but our team is going to see whether they can fly out on another airline.  The are now hoping to be stateside again on Sunday.   

February 1 - We praise God for our team’s safe arrival home!  They were able to obtain seats on a United humanitarian flight into Chicago, where representatives from the City of Chicago honored the passengers with a warm welcome.  Our team members were able to have a good meal and get some sleep before their connecting flights home today.

Once the team has had an opportunity to rest and de-brief, we will summarize  the current web reports and resume posting updates related to L’Eglese Baptiste Siloe and Grace Network’s relief work in Haiti.  On behalf of Grace Network and the emergency Haiti relief team, THANK YOU for your support, your encouragement, and your prayers.  Please continue to stand in prayer for our brothers and sisters at L’Eglese Baptiste Siloe, as well as for all the survivors in Haiti and their families.